Campus News

University of St. Thomas Women’s Volleyball Head Coach Kallie Noble will participate in Samaritan’s Feet Barefoot Coaching Movement to provide shoes and awareness for impoverished children. Noble will coach in her bare feet on Sept. 29 at home against Bacone College.

The Barefoot Coaching Movement began in 2007. In January 2008, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis Basketball Coach Ron Hunter coached a game in his bare feet to raise awareness for the plight of impoverished children who suffer from foot-borne diseases and infections because of a lack of shoes. This season, Noble will join Hunter, and thousands of coaches across the country, by going barefoot to raise awareness and funding to help put 1,000,000 pairs of shoes on the feet of children through Samaritan’s Feet.

“I am very excited to be participating in the Barefoot Coaching Movement,” Noble said. “During the NCAA tournament last year, I had the opportunity to be a part of the team that handed out shoes to children in New Orleans for Samaritan’s Feet. It was one of the most humbling experiences in my life.”

Samaritan’s Feet Founder Manny Ohonme said the organization is excited that Noble has chosen to be a part of the Barefoot Coaching Movement and coach a game in her bare feet.

“By doing this Coach Noble is making a statement to help provide a voice for the 300 million children world-wide who wake up each morning without a pair of shoes to put on their feet,” Ohonme said. “Coach Noble’s involvement along with her peers who have also taken to the court barefoot bring a new level of awareness to our ongoing mission to reach the world’s neediest children with the gift of shoes and the gift of hope.”

During the game, fans will be encouraged to donate to the organization by writing a check to Samaritan’s Feet. Fans, whether they attend the game or not, can also visit a donation web page, created for UST volleyball, to support the organization. With that gift, an impoverished child will be given a new pair of athletic shoes.